I'm trying to say goodbye to my 24-105 but I'm not willing to sell it at lower than purchase price. We are know it's incredibly cheap now. If it's discontinued next year do you think the price would trend up a bit? On the other hand I'm concerned more people will be interested in the sigma version or maybe canon 24-70 f4. What do you suggest I do? Cut loose or wait? It's collecting dust now but I don't urgently need the money.

Why would you sell it? Granted, if you're not actually ever using it, maybe. But just because a lens is discontinued (NOTE: Nothing official right now, merely speculation that the 24-70 f/4 will replace the 24-105) doesn't mean it ceases to still function exactly as it did before.

Really, if you're worried about resale value...on a lens like the 24-105 where there are a ton of gray market versions, it's going to remain fairly low compared to official, new retail. I don't think it'll ever really get close to it's retail, too many of them out there floating around. If you want to sell it, just go ahead and sell it now. Otherwise, hold onto it and keep using it.

Like anything, it varies based on supply and demand. When a lens is discontinued because a direct replacement is released, and that replacement is a substantially higher price, That can drive up demand for the old version, meaning prices rise accordingly. That's what happened with the 70–200 II and the 24–70/2.8 II.

The 24-105 has been a kit lens for many years. That means there are LOTS of them out there! The typical used price used to be $800, which was what the lens added to the kit price. Recently, that kit price add dropped to $500 for a a while, and now it's commonly $600. Even if the lens is discontinued, and the price goes up, I highly doubt it will go up by 33% to bring it back to $800.

The price on the 24-70/2.8 II will probably continue to drop over time, and that will mean even more 24-105s on the market. I'd say if you really want to sell it, do it soon and cut your losses before they get worse. Personally, I'm quite happy that I sold mine a few months ago, when the going rate was still $800.

When the 15mm f2.8 fisheye was discontinued for the 8-15mm f4 fisheye zoom the price of the old lens shot up, I paid $500 for mine new authorised dealer and they regularly changed hands on eBay for over $700 shortly after.

But that is unusual.

The 24-105 will always be in strong supply and people will always be trying to move up, more choices will make it worth even less. The Sigma 24-105, the MkI Canon 24-70 2.8, the Tamron 24-70 2.8 all all in the price bracket of a mint 24-105, most a bit more; the new 24-70 f4 will be the new darling for a while until the kits get broken up and people buy a kit to sell the lens to offset the body price. Get what you can now for the 24-105, if you don't use it I would.

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Too often we lose sight of the fact that photography is about capturing light, if we have the ability to take control of that light then we grow exponentially as photographers. More often than not the image is not about lens speed, sensor size, MP's or AF, it is about the light.

Some lens drop in price, but not by much as the replacement lens is much more expensive and only an incremental improvement over the previous version.

Optics are a place where you can double the price but really only see the net improvement in your image under very critical viewing.

However, certain things can conspire to drive prices of old gear up as well.

When I still shot film on Contax and Hasselblad, the lenses could be expensive but in line with ones from a similar tier like Leica. I bought some new, most used like a 28mm f2, an 85mm f1.2, and a 35mm PC from someone who inherited it and just wanted "money to buy a point and shoot". When they stopped making the Contax SLR and went to the N Digital with its new mount, the "orphaned" lenses dropped in price.

Now that adapters have come along, some of these lenses have a new lease on life and are much more expensive than the original new price.

Some lenses like to 200mm 1.8 USM were only changed to meet environmental goals of lead free glasses, and with the new version nealy 7K, a healthy market exists for well-preserved 1.8's

I don't see the 24-105 rebounding in price significantly. With the 24-70 f/4L replacing it that will be the new over supplied, and not as much demand lens. And while they are both on par with each other, I don't think that there will be a substantial longing and increased demand for the 105. The 35 extra mm... not exactly something to make people pay over what eventually the price of the 24-70 will be.

I wouldn't assume the 24-105 will be discontinued. It's too good and versatile of a lens for Canon to just drop. There are a lot of other lenses in Canon's line up that make much less sense and they keep churning them out. Don't make the mistake of believing every rumor you read on this forum.

If you hope to recoup your purchase price and you paid more than $600 for it, good luck. The market is flooded with these lenses and even Canon has a hard time moving them on their refurbished site (almost 500 remaining in stock after a 20% off sale – because you can buy a "white box" new version for less.)

If I were you, I'd sit tight for a few years and wait to see if the market gets flooded with white box versions of the 24-70 f4 then pick one of them up for $700 or so.

I think I'm probably keeping it for now. If I sell it now, after paying commission, I'm getting less than $600. If I sell it next year, I'm probably getting about the same amount. There's no point selling it at such a low price. I'm not that desperate yet.

It was first sold for $4,500 in 1988 and as little as $3,399.95 in July 2003 on BHPhoto. I started shooting digital with the EOS 10D in 2003. How I wish I could go back in time and pick one out of the last batch to be made by Canon.

If I sell it next year, I'm probably getting about the same amount. There's no point selling it at such a low price.

I like your optimism, but I'm not sure it's justified. The price of the 24-70/4 IS has dropped significantly since its launch - with rebate and discount, the Canon direct storefront has it for $1150...and that's the same price as the new solo 24-105. We'll see what the kit price is, but I'd guess $800-900. If it's $800, that'll likely push the used price of the older 24-105 down even further. The point of selling it at such a low price now is so you don't have to sell it at an even lower price later...

The 24-105 is a kit lens that there are to many of. Some lenses go up over time. But inflation plays as much a part as anything. For instance a used 300mm f/2.8 IS is selling for a bit less than 4k. I bought mine used four years ago and it is worth a bit more now than when I bought it.I doubt you see the 24-105 holding its value well compared to other lenses.

The real value of the 24-105mm will not change. With the US debt going up so fast, the elected officials refusing to raise the debt limit one day soon we may see run away inflation. Maybe then you will see the price of the 24-105 go from $700 used to $7000 used.

Sorry Doomsday Preppers is on the TV now. I think I should stockpile a few Canon lenses.

24-105 has a ticking bomb, which is the aperture flex cable. The day it snaps, the value drops to half, unless you can fix it yourself, which involves complete disassemble, soldering and optical adjustments afterwards.

There is nothing special about 24-105. My guess, price will cont. go down. You can get a new one on ebay for $600ish.

If you plan to shoot @ f8 to 11 then 24-105 is very handy, otherwise, it's crappy lens. When the price drops to $200, I will get one for my 5yrs daughter + 40D. Perfect combo for kid to have fun with photography.

Keeper list:1. 50L f1.22. 85L II f1.2

Why? Canon starts making f1.8 IS primes. I wonder how much Canon 50mm f1 cost now a day

Not to mention that second hand lenses are usually harder to sell the older they are.Also with the Sigma one coming out, there'll probably be even less demand for the Canon 24-105 in the future.

If you're not willing to cut your losses selling a lens, then avoid buying camera gear in general, unless you plan to keep it forever, as most of the time you will be losing money from selling gear, unless you bought it for real cheap off someone else who's parting with a huge loss.